Suspected IS Suicide Bombing Leaves 27 Dead in Turkey

People try to help wounded people after an explosion at a cultural center in Suruc, Sanliurfa province, Turkey, 20 July 2015.

A blast in Turkey's district of Suruc near the border with Syria killed at least  27 people on Monday, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.

At least another 100 people were sent to hospitals in the area, AA quoted police officials as saying.

The death toll is expected to rise, according to police.

No one has claimed responsibiluity for the attack but a Turkish official speaking on condition of anonymity told AP authorities have evidence that the blast was a suicide bombing and suspect the Islamic State (IS) group was behind it.

Suruc, in the southeastern province of Sanliurfa, is just across the border from the Syrian city of Kobane, in which fierce battles raged between Kurdish groups and Islamic State miltants in 2014 and 2015.

According to local sources, the blast targeted members of a pro-Kurdish group, Federation of Socialist Youth Associations, who gathered at the yard of the Amara Cultural Center run by the local municipality, AA said.

Turkish security forces have taken measures around the area, according to the Interior Ministry.

"Turkey condemns the perpetrators of this heinous attack that targeted the peace environment, and offers condolences to the deceased and wishes a speedy recovery to the wounded,"  AA quoted the Interior Ministry as saying.

 

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